Buffy's Holiday Carol
by Electronis Zappa
Summary: At a crucial point Buffy is visited by someone what will help her see what wrong choices will bring. Fair warning, character death.


Disclaimer: All your characters are belong to Joss/Mutant Enemy. Meaning: I own none of these characters, they belong to Joss Whedon and Mutant Enemy with one exception who belongs to someone else that's not me.  
Note 1: Thanks to Bobbi and E for looking it over for me  
Note 2: This is something I wrote two years ago. As far as December Diary, I have no clue if we'll get the 24th out on the 24th like I'm aiming for, that remains to be seen. As for Six Inches to the Left, it's being worked on, sadly it may not come tonight but it WILL come no later than the end of the year, it started going in a direction I don't want to take it and I need to figure out how to reign it in. I'm so sorry, please don't hate me  
Note 3: Happy Holiday/Merry Christmas/ Happy Kwanza/Joyous Belated Festivus/Happy Hanukkah/Blessed Belated Yule(sorry for being late on those three)/Happy whatever else you may celebrate this time of year

* * *

~~~December 18th, 1998~~~  
"Do you have any idea at all what you want to get Willow for Hanukkah?" Joyce asked as she and Buffy walked through the mall.

"None at all." Buffy said as she looked around at the stores, deep in thought. "She's been taking her breakup with Oz pretty well, but I still want to do something nice for her."

"She means a lot to you doesn't she?" Joyce asked, a small smile on her face

"That's a good question." Cordy asked as the world froze around her and Buffy.

"What just happened?" Buffy asked, looking around. "How can you be here, when you're over there?" she added, nodding to where Cordelia was frozen in place

"Long story, I'm from the future, I'm a higher being now. I don't have time to explain quantum temporal mechanics to you, that's not why I'm here." Cordy said, glancing over at herself. "I was so deeply in the closet then, look at me checking out her ass."

"You're gay? THAT'S why you're here?" Buffy asked, furrowing her brow.

"No, that's not why I'm here, I'm just making a comment. I'm here to make sure you make the right choice." Cordy said  
"You mean like 'It's a Wonderful Life'?" Buffy asked "Every time a bell rings, an angel gets its wings?"

"Sort of." Cordy nodded. "Though that bell thing is completely made up. Do you realize how often bells ring and how few angles there are? Plus, they all have their wings already."

"Ok, so, what's this choice I have to make?" Buffy asked, raising her eyebrow and crossing her arms over her chest.

"Willow. You're shopping for her Hanukkah gift right now right?" Cordy asked, knowing the answer was yes. "You're debating if you want to tell her you're in love with her or not."

"I don't even know if she likes girls, if she feels the same way as I do. I don't want to damage our friendship." Buffy said, finally vocalizing what had been going through her mind.

"I can assure you she's gay, and she feels the same way you do." Cordelia said. "I'm here to show you what happens if you don't go after her now and you never get together."

"So, 'A Christmas Carol' instead?" Buffy asked.

"I'm not a ghost, though in what we'll call the darkest timeline, I do live with one for awhile." Cordy said. "But I am going to show you Christmas Future" she added, as she transported Buffy fourteen years to the future.

* * *

~~Christmas Eve, 2012~~  
"Where are we?" Buffy asked as she and Cordy materialized

"Los Angeles, this is the apartment you share with your sister." Cordy said, nodding towards Dawn sitting on the couch and Buffy sitting in a chair nearby.

"Sister? I don't have a sister." Buffy said.

"Long story, you'll find out in a little under two years. Act surprised." Cordy explained "This is Christmas Eve, 2012."

"It's kind of dreary." Buffy said looking around the still frozen room.

"This is why we're here, just watch." Cordy said as the world around them unfroze.

"So what do you want to do tonight?" Buffy asked

"Does it matter?" Dawn answered, clearly annoyed. "It's just you and I. You've driven everyone else away. Tara and Giles are dead because of you."

"Tara?" Buffy asked Cordy

"Willow's girlfriend, Dawn had a crush on her." Cordy explained

"I haven't had a serious girlfriend since college." Dawn added "None of them can stand being around you. Vi and I had the start of something serious, but even she could only take so much. I should be in New York with her instead of here with you." She continued. "I'm lucky Faith tosses me the occasional pity fuck when she's in town. There's this girl named Jess I used to work with, before the vice principle let her go. She's this sweet, dorky girl. I've wanted badly to go after her, but I don't want to bring her around you with this funk you've been in."

"I'm sorry, I'm going to go patrol." Buffy said, guilt heavy on her face as Cordelia freezes time

"What's she talking about?" Buffy asked, seeing the hurt on her future self's face.

"About nine years ago, there was this epic battle where all potential slayers were activated and Sunnydale was destroyed. A lot of stuff has happened since then, the world knows about vampires and slayers and magic. You eventually eliminate pretty much all magic left in the world, which Willow doesn't take well. The organization the gets created to help the slayers falls apart and you get most of the blame. You become listless. Xander tries to stick by you, but it eventually gets to the point where even he doesn't want anything to do with you. The only one who does is Dawn, because she's your sister, but as you just saw, even she has a breaking point." Cordelia explained as she shifts them to a dark alleyway and unfreezes time again

"What do we have here?" A voice asks from the dark as future Buffy approaches. "A slayer? I've always wanted to taste a slayer's blood." It says as he vamps out and lunges toward Buffy. She barely puts up a fight. Soon enough, the vampire gains the upper hand and sinks his fangs into Buffy's neck. After he's drank his fill, she falls lifeless to the ground.

"This is how it ends for you." Cordy said as she stood over the body. "He was only sired shortly before magic was eliminated. He's far from Spike or Angel. And he just took down THE slayer."

"What's any of this have to do with Willow?" Buffy asked, unable to take her eyes off her corpse.

"You're stronger when you fight for Willow." Cordy explained. "Remember the Master? You had given up.."

"Until I saw how Willow reacted to the death of the A/V club." Buffy nodded.

"And why did you come back to Sunnydale after this summer?" Cordy asked

"Willow. But I can still fight for her if we're friends." Buffy countered.

"It's not the same. You love her. She loves you. You belong together. Trust me on this." Cordy said as she returns them to the mall. "Answer your mother."

* * *

~~~ December 18th, 1998~~~  
"I love her." Buffy said, a grin on her face, glad she finally said it out loud.

"I've been wondering when you were going to admit it." Joyce said, matching Buffy's grin. "So, something big then?" she asked

* * *

~~~Christmas Eve, 2012~~~  
"The girls are sound asleep." Willow said as she sat down on the couch next to Buffy, having come downstairs from putting their daughters to bed.

"We should probably think about heading up soon ourselves." Tara said as she joined her girlfriends. "The girls will be up bright and early, you know how anxious Joyce gets. Jenny will be too, she's starting to get to that age. There are times when I envy Dawn, Faith and Vi."

"That'll change as soon as their daughter's born. I hear they're talking about naming her Amanda" Buffy said as she brought up the cable guide "Hey look, 'It's a Wonderful Life' is coming on."

"You're never going to get tired of that movie are you?" Willow teased, her head on Buffy's shoulders

"You've worn that necklace every day since I gave it to you 14 years ago." Buffy pointed out as she brought her hands to the golden flower necklace. "None of us would be here if Cordy didn't show me what she did."

"It's always so cute seeing Fred try to explain parallel universes to her." Tara said as the movie started "As soon as it's over, we're going to bed."

"I couldn't think of anyplace I'd rather be." Buffy said as she turned the necklace over, brushing her fingers over the words "It's a wonderful life because of you"


End file.
